III. Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Understanding and Treatment of AIDS

III. Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Understanding and Treatment of AIDS (1) Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Understanding of the Pathogenesis of AIDS AIDS is a relatively young viral infectious disease. Although traditional Chinese medicine literature throughout history did not explicitly use the term “AIDS,” its transmission patterns, epidemic characteristics, clinical manifestations, and prognosis all share similarities with certain conditions and fundamental theoretical understandings in traditional Chinese medicine. Based on the disease progression and clinical symptoms of AIDS, it can be categorized under traditional Chinese medicine’s terms such as “epidemic disease,” “latent heat disease,” or “deficiency-based illness.” As stated in the “Suwen – Miscellaneous Chapters, Chapter on Needle Therapy”: “When the Five Epidemics arrive, they spread easily, regardless of size, and their symptoms are similar.” Consequently, some scholars believe that AIDS shares similarities with plagues. From the incubation period following infection to the onset of disease, and then from the onset to the late stages, the condition gradually worsens, with complex symptoms and diverse pathological changes. However, qi deficiency and blood stasis are the primary pathogenic mechanisms. The longer the course of AIDS, the more severe the pathogenic toxins become, and the more profound the deficiency of vital energy and essence. On one hand, qi deficiency weakens the circulation of blood; on the other hand, pathogenic toxins obstruct the blood vessels, causing poor blood flow and internal blockages. HIV is considered a pathogenic qi that resides in the Three Jiao—upper, middle, and lower—and throughout the body, disrupting the overall qi mechanism and qi transformation functions, damaging the original qi of the Mingmen and Three Jiao, leading to weakened vital energy and the formation of pathogenic products like phlegm and blood stasis, ultimately causing depletion of the Mingmen’s original qi (original yin and original yang) in the mid-to-late stages.

This disease has a long incubation period and a sudden onset, with severe symptoms. When warm and toxic pathogens penetrate from the interior and manifest externally, they cause hemorrhagic symptoms such as rash, hematemesis, melena, or hematuria; in severe cases, intense heat toxicity may lead to wind-induced symptoms. Therefore, this disease also falls under the category of “latent heat disease.” In addition to the disease’s onset, patients often exhibit signs of qi deficiency and essence insufficiency, such as progressive weight loss, general weakness, night sweats, poor appetite, diarrhea, and prolonged low-grade fever. As described in the “Jingui Yaolue – Chapter on Deficiency-Based Illness,” symptoms such as “pale complexion,” “shortness of breath and palpitations,” “shortness of breath,” “aching and discomfort,” “dizziness and hair loss,” “sweating,” “tension in the lower abdomen,” “abdominal fullness, sometimes accompanied by diarrhea and poor digestion,” and “spontaneous ejaculation…” are quite similar to the clinical symptoms observed during the AIDS syndrome stage.

AIDS is often accompanied by lymphadenopathy, which in traditional Chinese medicine is referred to as “lump-like masses.” Over time, this condition can lead to hepatosplenomegaly and the development of malignant tumors, falling under the categories of “accumulation,” “large mass formations,” “wicked nodules,” or “loss of nourishment” in traditional Chinese medicine. Other conditions, such as oral candidiasis associated with AIDS, are similar to “thrush” and “snow mouth” in traditional Chinese pediatrics; varicella zoster infection resembles “snake-like rash” and “fire-drawn rash” in traditional Chinese dermatology. Based on the clinical manifestations of AIDS, the range of traditional Chinese medical conditions involved is vast. In addition to those mentioned above, there are also cough and asthma, dysphagia, vomiting, diarrhea, dysentery, palpitations, bleeding disorders, jaundice, urinary tract infections, stroke, pain syndromes, epilepsy, dementia, pharyngitis and laryngitis, phlegm nodules, tumors, rashes, and itching.

Based on the disease progression and clinical symptoms of AIDS, it can be classified under traditional Chinese medicine’s categories of “epidemic disease,” “pathogenic qi,” “latent heat disease,” or “deficiency-based illness.” However, this disease is neither a simple case of “pathogenic toxin and plague” nor merely a deficiency-based condition; rather, it represents a state of conflict between righteous and evil forces, where both deficiency and excess coexist. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the onset of this disease involves two key aspects: external invasion of pathogenic toxins and deficiency of vital energy. Pathogenic toxins are “pathogenic qi,” highly contagious, while the deficiency of vital energy primarily originates from the kidneys. Treatment employs traditional Chinese medicine’s unique holistic perspective and dialectical treatment approach, observing the evolving trends in the disease’s pathogenesis and tailoring treatment accordingly to each individual patient.

(2) Dialectical Differentiation and Formulas Currently, many studies on AIDS employ dialectical classification methods. Below are common treatment approaches: